Beating A Dead Horse Origin

De 2019 sailors called the first month at sea dead horse time, because they were working hard (also called flogging) for nothing. The end of the first month was celebrated by making an effigy of a horse, parading it around the ship, hauling it up a mast, setting fire to it. The origins of the idiom beat a dead horse can be traced back to the early 17th century, where horses played a vital role in transportation, agriculture, and warfare.